Burglary at WA lawmaker's home reinvigorates bill

After his home was burglarized while he and his wife slept, a Tulalip lawmaker is reinvigorating his efforts to pass a bill that would allow police to track cellphone signals.

The Everett Herald reports Monday that after state Sen. John McCoy's home was burglarized earlier this month, he used an app to track down his stolen iPhone, allowing police to pinpoint where the suspect was located. Soon after, officers arrested the suspect, who had previous felony convictions for theft, identity theft, forgery and possessing stolen property.

The experience is inspiring McCoy to push a bill that died last session. The bill would require wireless companies to provide call location information to police in cases of emergencies involving risk of death or physical harm.

While the American Civil Liberties Union remained neutral on the bill, the organization had privacy concerns, such was what would constitute an emergency.